Kindergarten (3.5 to 5.5 years)
“Kindergarten children are confident in spirit, infinite in resources, and very eager to learn and explore. For children this age, everything is possible”
Our Kindergarten program recognizes that children will soon be entering grade-school; hence it is vital that we equip them with the resources needed to succeed in school. Our program is based on the IB PYP and the belief that children are competent learners who are eager to explore the world around them. The program runs for about 4.5 hours everyday wherein educators work collaboratively with children to generate a program that meets curricular outcomes while engaging children in their interests and talents. In this approach, the educator becomes a co-constructor of knowledge along with the child and designs units and projects that children are interested in working on.
Day in the Life
Start of the day
Welcome and Inquiry Time
90 minutes
During circle time, children and teachers discuss the different stations that have been set up, indulge in mindfulness exercises, and share personal stories. After circle time, children immerse in inquiry time which is set out for exploration of a project within a unit.
Choice Time
30 minutes
Choice time is an opportunity for children to direct their own learning. The educator carefully sets up centers with materials that provoke investigations but it is the child who discovers ways of using the materials.
Math and Literacy Time
60 minutes
Math and Literacy Time is designed for focused skill building that ensures children are prepared for Grade School.
Snack Time
30 minutes
Snack time is an opportunity for educators to model healthy food habits and discuss different types of foods being eaten in the class.
Sensory or Outdoor Play
45 minutes
Everyday, children spend about 45 minutes in the sensory gym or in one of the outdoor play areas. Activities include obstacles courses, ziplining, tumbling, cycling, group games, soccer, sand play and water play.
Reflection Time
15 minutes
After an exhausting and eventful day, children and educators gather to recollect their energy and experiences. Closing circle time is an opportunity to discuss the activities of the day, choice time explorations, or participate in storytelling.
The Bell Goes Off
Kindergarten Learning Spaces
Sensory Gym
The sensory gymnasium is every child’s favourite space at Toddler’s Den. It is filled with open-ended and structured challenges that change every week. Children strengthen physical skills and social skills as they walk on balancing beams, wobble on river stone gonges, fall on crash mats, climb on rock walls, jump under parachutes, ride scooters, swing on ziplines, and hang on wallbarz.
Outdoor Play Spaces
Toddler’s Den is equipped with 3 types of outdoor spaces - active, social, and experimental. In the active play area, children have access to open-ended play equipment where they develop their gross-motor skills through playing football, cycling, crawling and climbing on mounds. The outdoor social area is an interactive and collaborative space with a sand pit, water tub, and a pretend play area. In the experimental outdoor area, children experiment with materials that evoke their multiple senses.
Numeracy and literacy station
We believe that building a strong literacy and numeracy foundation provides young children with a headstart into a world that is based on communicating through words and numbers. Children spend an hour in this area everyday on focussed numeracy and literacy inquiry and projects. This station plays host to learning manipulatives that are inspired by Montessori and Reggio Emilia.
Art and Design Station
The art and design station has easels, tables, and mirror tables for children to express themselves through art explorations. They can sketch, paint, sculpt, create illustrations, make cartoons, and create textures. Learning to create and appreciate art and design is important for children to understand different languages of communication. Children are invited to reuse recyclable materials such as cotton balls and bottle caps to create beautiful stuff masterpiece.
Reading Station
The reading station is a cozy nook filled with pillows, plush characters, and couches. Storybooks of all genres including science, numeracy, social world, imagination, and emotional intelligence are hosted in this center. Children engage in reading individually or in pairs, listening to read-alouds and performing plays with peers. The reading station also acts as a reef of calm where children can escape the hustle and bustle of the classroom.
Block Station
The block station is every child’s favourite harbour in the classroom. It has a range of blocks in different shapes, sizes, and characteristics from wooden unit blocks to magnetic blocks. This station hosts collaborative construction of elaborate structures that sometimes transform into sites for dramatic play. Children immerse in problem solving as they make complex structures and build language skills as they talk about the details of their structure with the entire class during reflection time.
Pretend Play Station
The pretend play station is designed in a way that kindergarten children can transform it into different sites of interest such as restaurants, hospitals, pet stores, barber stores, bakeries, beaches, and campsites. Children have access to a range of props and costumes that can be used in many imaginative ways. Children learn to care for these by creating agreements about where different materials will be placed during the school year.